


Pick me up

by ChasetheSun2



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Gen, Gift Fic, Pale Romance, Valentine's Day Fluff, moiraillegiance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 10:09:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13679565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChasetheSun2/pseuds/ChasetheSun2
Summary: Equius is down. Nepeta opts to cheer him up with a surprise.





	Pick me up

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day! GIft fic for [Finaglingming](http://finaglingming.tumblr.com/) on tumblr as part of the Homestuck Valentine's exchange!

Equius was awakened by a pillow to the face and the sound of mischievous giggling. With a groan he turned over, pulling the blankets over his head only to have them ripped away and the pillow shoved in his face again.

“Wake up!” He heard a familiar voice in between the light bounces of pillow fluff against his ear.

“Oof - ughhh, fine.”

Finally giving in he sat up, somehow managing to look more tired than when he’d fallen asleep. His hair stuck off in odd places, tangling around his horns and falling into his eyes. Through his bleary gaze he spotted an olive-clad figure with sharp teeth….bared at him?

He blinked and rubbed his eyes. No - no, that was a smile. His ears turned a light blue and he felt his chest squeeze lightly. He’d recognize that eager smile anywhere. Something was off about it today, though.

“Good evening, Equius!” Nepeta’s boisterously loud voice made the poor blueblood wince, his ears pinning back. He adored her, truly he did, but good heavens could she be loud.

“Good _morning_ ,” Equius corrected, stretching and yawning. His back was sore, but that was nothing new with the ridiculously hard bed Nepeta insisted on having. One of these days he’d get a remote-controlled bed so they could both be comfortable. Or just two beds. “We’re not on Alternia anymore, we’re on Earth. And Earth has a diurnal schedule.”

There was a look of mischief on Nepeta’s face that made Equius falter slightly. Nothing good ever came from that look.

“No, I mean good evening.” She said, then pulled back the curtains. Equius flinched, expecting to be hit by the gentler Earth sun’s light, but instead, he was met with stars. “You slept all day, dummy!”

Ice flooded Equius’ veins. “....I what.”

“You heard me.” That was definitely a smug grin on his little moirail’s face.

Equius had a look of pure panic on his face as he leapt from the bed, nearly catapulting Nepeta off his lap in the process. Sweat began to bead on his forehead and his bare back as he rushed around the room like a nervous wreck. Nepeta yelped as she was thrown, clawing at the bed to keep her balance. Once she didn’t feel seasick, she turned to watch Equius, who was currently mumbling to himself under his breath.

“...Completely missed the showing, gracious, how could I be such an _idiot!_ ” He muttered, grabbing clothes as fast as he could to try and assemble a decent outfit.

“Equius?” Nepeta tilted her head. “What’s going on?”

“--And not to mention how late I’ll be, what time is it -” He glanced at the clock and let out a groan. “Fiddlestucks, I’m so late, they’ll never accept my proposal now--”

“...Equius.”

“Ugh, what’s the point--AUGH!” Equius was interrupted by a pair of strong, small arms around his waist, picking him up as easily as if he were a feather and suplexing him onto the bed. His world went upside-down for a moment and then his vision was filled with pillows and blankets. He went quiet, blinking stupidly for a moment as he tried to figure out what just happened.

Above him, Nepeta sat on his stomach with her legs crossed and frowned down at her moirail’s prone form.

“Did you just….suplex me?”

“Damn right I did.” Nepeta nodded, a slight hint of pride in her voice. She reached out, gently cupping Equius’ sharp jaw in her rough hand, giving him one, two, three soft paps. Equius leaned into the touch and took a shaky breath. “Don’t you remember, dummy? The showing was yesterday.”

Equius paused for a moment, trying to remember through the haze of sleep. That was right; he’d shown off a new advancement of his, robotic butlers to assist with chores and things around the house. He’d been far too nervous in his speech, however, and the robots he’d brought were….unrefined. At least, according to the judges.

Equius’ shoulders slumped and he let out a groan, burying his face in the pillow. Now he remembered. He’d come home and spent all night looking at pictures of purrbeasts with Nepeta to forget about it, and yet, there it was.  

Nepeta let out a soft, soothing sound. To pacify him, she leaned down and lifted up the pillow, kissing his forehead gently. “Silly Equius.” She murmured, resting on top of him and cuddling into him. He sighed, hiding his face in her hair. “You smell.”

“I always smell.” He mumbled, still disgruntled.

“It’s your breath this time.” Nepeta giggled as he let out a groan. “What? It’s true.”

Equius turned over. “I just woke up, Nepeta.” He grumbled sullenly. “Forgive me if my hygiene is sub-par.”

“What’s your excuse for the rest of the time?” Nepeta said teasingly, poking him in the ribs and making him yelp.

“ _Nepeta!_ ”

“I’m only joking! Relax, nerd.” She got up, taking his hand and dragging him up out of bed. He only looked more huffy as he gave her a half-hearted glare. “Come on. You go shower and stuff, I’ll make breakfast.”

Well. That was new. Suspicion immediately clouded Equius’ gaze as he looked down at his moirail, who seemed to be hiding something behind that smirk of hers. Excitement and nervousness shone in her eyes in equal amounts and he frowned even as he let her tug him to the bathroom.

“Why are you so eager to get me out of bed all of a sudden?” He asked point-blank.

She went ramrod straight and her cheeks went bright green. “No reason!” She said. Her voice squeaked like it did every time she was lying. “It’s just, you know - it’s late! And we don’t want to mess up your precious sleeping schedule, do we?”

Equius raised a brow. He knew this wasn’t the truth, not at all. Nepeta never bugged him about his sleeping schedule - about a lot of other things, sure, but not that. “...Alright,” He said, still wary even as he closed the door to the bathroom.

Once he was out of her line of sight Nepeta let out a sigh of relief. That was far too close for comfort. Now, on to making breakfast.

When Equius was clean and dressed, his hair in a ponytail, Nepeta dragged him out of the bedroom and towards the dining room of their apartment. A frown tugged at his face and he was still mumbling to himself about ‘improvements’ and ‘design flaws’. He didn’t even look up until he heard a slight, nervous cough.

There on the table, Nepeta had set out a hearty and delicious looking breakfast - not a hint of wild game in sight. Not that he was complaining, as he wasn’t a fan of wild game, but the assortment of fruits, fresh whipped cream, and crepes that were slightly burnt on one side was highly unusual for her. With a confused expression he sat down, looking at his moirail.

“What is all this?” He asked.

Nepeta shrugged, looking more anxious than ever now. “Can’t I do something for my treasured moirail?” She asked, pretending to be offended. Equius stammered for a moment, backtracking.

“I - well, of course, but--”

Nepeta smiled gently at him and gave his cheek a soft pap as she sat down to her own breakfast. “Relax, silly.” She said. “Don’t worry. Just eat.”

Equius didn’t argue. Instead, he took a bite of his food, giving a soft, pleased hum. It was delicious; the crepes were soft and warm, piled thick with bananas and cream. The fruit was all cut fresh, scoops of melon and sweet strawberries, all his favourites, all topped with the same sweet cream. “This is wonderful,” He murmured, looking up at Nepeta and noticing she wasn’t eating. “Nepeta…?”

Nepeta seemed to perk up as he spoke to her, wringing her hands. “Oh - I’m glad you like it!” She said, her voice chipper but riddled with anxiety. With a frown, Equius moved closer.

“What’s wrong?”

Nepeta shook her head vigorously, but when Equius wrapped an arm around her shoulders she gratefully took the comfort. She took a deep, shaky breath, rummaging in her pocket.

“Nothing’s wrong,” She said, not hiding her nervousness now. Equius’ heart gave a particularly hard pound as she took something out of her pocket, putting it on the table. “I just….”

It was a small, velvet box. _A ring case._

Equius made a soft, choked noise as Nepeta opened it up, revealing a thin silver band topped with a shining pink diamond. Several seconds passed where Equius couldn’t hear his moirail talking to him, off in his own little world, staring at the ring.

“And - I understand if you want to say no!” Nepeta was saying, her voice rising in pitch from anxiety the longer Equius went without answering. “I mean, I know it’s not really normal yet, and it’s a big thing--”

“Yes.”

Nepeta stopped talking as Equius whispered the word. She looked up, spotting pale blue welling up in his eyes, a shaky smile on his face. He’d never thought - not in a million years would he ever think that he meant that much to anyone, even Nepeta - but here he was, being _proposed to_.

A proper moirail’s wedding. Proof to the world that they were fated. That they belonged together.

After the day he’d had before, this start to his evening was just too much. It was...so wonderful, having someone who cared as much as Nepeta did, constantly there and supporting him, making him this happy. Tears slipped down his cheeks and he covered his mouth. Nepeta made a worried croon and reached up, cupping his cheeks.

“Oh, Equius, please don’t cry! I didn’t mean to make you cry! Come here--”

He didn’t need to be told twice; He lunged into her arms, picking her up and pulling her into his lap. Anyone else would have had their ribs broken from the force of his hug, but Nepeta barely wheezed. She smiled, gently rubbing his back and purring to him.

“Pale for you.” Equius barely whispered the words.

Nepeta nuzzled into his shoulder and hugged him back, petting his hair with a gentle hand. She could feel his heart pounding in his chest and smiled, squeezing him tighter.

“Pale for you you too, Equius.” She said softly. She felt the cool tears on her shoulder, but didn’t mind. The tear stains would be easy to wash out. For now, she just enjoyed the comfort of his hug. “My silly diamond.”


End file.
